Vehicle-spring



O'. w. THOMPSON.

VEHICLE SPRING. l APPucATlON FILED OOT.2.1919.=

Patented Feb. 3,1920.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEIoE.

CLARANCE W. THOMPSON, OF WILMINGTON, DELAWARE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

YvEnIo'Lili-similare.

Patented Feb. 3, 1920.

Application filed October 2,' 1919. Serial No. 327,947.

.To all 'whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARANCE WQTHOMP- son',4 acitizen of the United-States, residing at Wilmington, in` the county of New Castle and State of Delaware, have invented certain new `and useful Improvements in .Vehicle-Springs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention ,relates to vehicle-springs of the type-.that include means whereby the rebound-of the load is cushioned and stresses and suddenness of movement of the springsustained rparts lessened.

It is an obj ect fof the invention to. pro-` vide a .spring of that kind that will function properly to absorh'vertical movement of the runnmg-gear occasioned by irregularities that it is notgthe intention to.:be limited necessarily thereto in interpretation ofthe claims, as modifications. and adaptationsl within*1 thelimits of theclaims-can bejmade without departing from fthe nature land spirit of the'invention.`

Like reference-characters refer to corresponding parts in the viewsof the drawings, of whic I l.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of one form; v V Y Fig. 2 is a 'transverse sectional view on the line 2 2, Fig. 1;

Fig-.3 is a transversesectional line 3 3, Fig. 1; `Fig`.-4 is a transverse sectional view on the line 4-4, Fig. l;

view on the Fig. 5 isa longitudinal sectional view of another form l Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view on the line 6 6, Fig. 5; and

Fig. 7 is a transverse sectionalfvieigs7 on the line 7 7, Fig, 5.

ing nut 20 and t us moving the .upwardly or downwardly, depen ent upon .Having reference to the drawings,v and particularly to Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, 8 designates a spring-housing, which preferably is of cylindrical form, 9 and 10 closure members sorewed'in place on theends of the housing, 11 a bracket or the like whereby the spring-housing is secured to and mounted on an axle or axle-housing, 12 a member arranged -to be connected withy a vehicleframe to sustain weight thereof, and 13a sleeve of that member into which is screwed a rod 14, the rod being adjustable as' to length beyond the sleeve by turning inthe latter.

The rod 14 extends through the upper end of the housing, and insideof the housing there is slidably mounted on the rod a disk-like abutment 15 having a main-spring seat 16. A sleeve 1.7 extends upwardly from the abutment 15 around the rod, upon which it is slidable, and through the upper closure member, and at its upper end it normally is in abutment with the sleeve 13.` Below the abutment 15, the lower terminal portionlof the rod 14 is slightl formed at the upper end of the enlargement to limit relative movement of the abutment 15 onthe rod. A guide-post 19 projects into this socket, and at the opposite end it extends through 'the lower closure member 10. .Outside of thev closure `member the post is screw threaded and provided with a nut 20.

A loadsustaining coil-spring 2l is .positioned. between the seatl '16 Janda seat 22 enlanged to accommodate a socket 18, an a utment being in lthe, lower portion of the housing, this i sprmg belng tensioned to resist compression Aand to restrain movement of the abutment v 1" 5underl the influence ofload toward the `lowerendof the housing.

Acmtrac'tile coil-spring 23 lissecured 'at v its lower end to the guide-post 19. and at its upper end to the abutment 15, and the tension of this sprin may be adjusted by turnide-post the-directionthe nut is turned.

vA.compression-resisting coil-spring 24 is disposed between the upper side of the-abutment 15 and the upper closure member.

The parts are shown inthe drawings in normal adjustment and under normal load. When a vehicle with which such a spri-n device is associated is running and upan down movement is imparted to the runninglthe positions they would have at rest under s ward movement vagainst the load results in compression of the load-sustaining spring '21, the abutment 15, sleeve 17, and rod 14C moving downwardly with respect to ,the housing.A On thev rebound,'the parts have a tendency to move in the opposite direction or upwardly. The rebound is counteracted Aand restrained to relieve it of suddenness it necessary cured at its upperor downwardly and violence by the contractile spring Q3. It' the rebound is of sufficient force not to be entirely counteracted by the springZ, then 4the rod 14 continuing its upward movement will move the disk 15 against the compression-resisting spring 21. It thus will be seen that the reaction Jfrom compression of the load-sustaining spring is counteractedand shocks absorbed irst by the contractile spring 23, and thereafter by the spring 21 it' the reaction is sutlicient to make for the latter spring to be brought into action.

In the adaptation ot the invention-exem-- plified by Figs, 5, 6, and 7, the upper counteracting spring and guide-post are not emf ployed. The sleeve 17, which is the main elementv in this as well as ni the form pre viousl'y described for sustaining weight be tween the loa-d and the spring 21, bears on the abutment 15, and the rod 14 likewise extends downwardly through those parts. This rod has slidably mounted on its lower end' portion an abutment 25, which is retained thereon by a head 2G. A contractile coil-springs 27, corresponding to the spring 23 of the previously-desci'ibed form, is seend to this plate or abutment and at its other or lower end to a hook or similar member 28 on the 'upper end 'of a rod 19, the `rod being movable upwardly by means of the nut 20 to adjust the tension olf the spring as in the case of the other form. The coactionof the two Asprings also is practically `the same asin 45v the previous form. In case the compression of the load-sustaining spring 21 is suliicient to. permit the spring 27 to contract to its neutral state, no compression force thereafter will be exerted thereon, for the rod 111 will slide through the abutment 25. On thev rebound, the enlarged terminal head of the rod will-engage the abutment and will pull against the contractile spring, and the, re

bound thus will be cushioned and the shocks absorbed. i

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is' V 1. A vehicle-spring -devicecomprising a housing, a rod and a sleeve slidable'thereon extending into said housing and arranged to sustain said rodnormally in contact with one end of said sleeve, a shoulder on said rod limiting relative movement of said abutment in load, an abutment slidableon `tive movement of said abutment in the opposite direction, a fload-sustaining spring arranged to-i'esist movement 'of said abutment under the influence of load, a spring arranged to resist movement 4of said rod in the opposite direction` and meansfit'or ad justiiig the tension ot' said latter spring.

3. A vehicle-springdevice comprising an elongated housing having a removable closure member at each end, a` "rod-'an`d a sleeve Lslidable thereon extending through one closure member into the housing arranged to sustain load, an abutment slidable on said iod'noimally in Contact with-90 said sleeve, a shoulder on said rody limiting relative movement ot' said abutment in the opposite direction, a load-sustaining 'compression-resisting spring arranged A 'to be compressed'by said abutment, a contractile '95 spring connected at one end to a fixed part f i and at the other end to one sidev of said abutment, and a' compressioirresisting spring disposed to restrain movement of said abutment in the direction opposite to that for compression ot said loadsustaining spring.

4. A 4vehicle-spring device comprising an elongated housing having a 'removable closure member at each end, a rod and a L05 sleeve slidable thereon extending through one closure member into the housing arranged to sustain load and said rod having a socket at its inner end, an abutment slidable on said` rod normally in `con` 110.

tact with said sleeve, a shoulder on `said rod limiting lrelative movement vof said "abutment in'the opposite direction, a loadsustaining compression-resisting spring arranged to be compressed by said abutment, an elongated fixed member extending intosaid rod-socket, and a Lcontractile spring connected to said fixed member and toisaid abutment and arranged to resist movement of said rod and-abutment in the direction opposite to that for compression ot'said load-sustaining spring.

5. A vehicle-spring device comprising an elongated housing having a removable V closure member at eachend,a rod and a 125.

sleeve slidable thereon extending through one closure member into the' housing arranged to sustain load and saidl rod having a socket vat its inner end, an abutment slidable on said rod normally in contact with xed member extending into said rod-socket,

a contractile spring connected to said xed member and to said'abutment and arranged to resist movement ofsaid rod and abutment in the direction opposite to that for compression of said load-sustaining spring, and nleans for adjusting said fixed member and thereby the tension\of said contractile sprinv. Y v

(3. A vehicle-spring device comprising an elongated housing having closed ends, a rod and a sleeve slidable thereon extending through one end into the housing arranged to sustain loadandsaid rod having a socket at its inner end, a shoulder on said rod, an

abutment slidable on said rod between said sleeve and shoulder, a load-sustaining compression-resisting spring arranged to be compressed by said abutment, an elongated lixed member socket, a contractile spring connected to said fixed member and to one side of said 'abutment and a compression-resistm l and to one side of said abutment i pression-resistlng Vspring vdisposed on the extending into said rod?.

spring disposed on the opposite side of said abut-A ment arranged to' resist movement of-said. rod'and abutment inthe-'direction opposite to that for compression of said load-'sustaining spring.

'TQ A- vehicle-springdevice pomprising an i elongatedhousing .having closed ends, a rod and a sleeve slidable thereon extending through one end to sustain load "and said rod having a socket at itsinner end, a guide-post mounted in the other end of said housing-and extending into saidsocket, a shoulderon said rod, an abutment slidable on said' rod between said sleeve and shoulder, a'load-sustaining compression-resisting spring arranged to be vcompressed by said abutment, and a contractile spring connected to. said guide-post opposite side of said abutment arranged .to resist movement ofsaid rod and abutment in the direction opposite to that for com pression of said loadfsustaining spring. In witness whereof 1 afiix my signature.

CLARAN'CE W. THOMPSON.

into the housing arranged and a com- 

